Armour Hill cleanup first step by stewardship group to create ‘jewel’ for Peterborough

A stewardship group launched in the summer aims to change the perception and use of Armour Hill in Peterborough’s east end.

On Saturday, members of the Ashburnham Memorial Stewardship Group held a morning garbage cleanup of one of the highest viewing points in the city.

The group — founded in June by Jenn McCallum and Nancy Cockburn — consists of about two dozens members focused on making improvements to the hill, including beautification and safety.

“We’ve noticed a lot of garbage tends to be dumped — especially at the top of Armour Hill,” said McCallum. “We are looking to clean up garbage, but also to promote stewardship and respect of the hill. We would like to see long-term changes that promote respect and multi-use at the top of the hill.”

Armour Hill was initially established as a park by the Ashburnham Women’s Patriotic League to pay tribute to those who died during the First World War. The 14 acres of land include two acres for the Peterborough Museum and Archives, a large parking lot and a lookout of East City at the very top.

However, the group says the lookout has become a gathering spot for motorists rather than pedestrians. They cited an incident on Oct. 21, when two vehicles collided and several people were struck.

“It’s not safe up here,” said McCallum. “If you’re walking alone at night it’s pretty scary. We don’t know if people are using drugs or if there’s broken glass. I had a $500 bill after my dog cut her foot on glass. We would love to see people up here instead of just cars idling or speeding. We want it to be a place for everyone and we want it be respected and enjoyed.”

The group is working with the city, museum and Parks Canada, which owns land along Lock 21 near the base of the hill, as well as Indigenous users to implement infrastructure modifications to “change behaviour” at the top of the hill.

“To be more positive and more multi-use,” said McCallum, “we’d love to see bicycles up here as opposed to just vehicles.”

Brainstorming sessions continue and the group welcomes input on improvements that can be made on the hill, Cockburn said.

“I think this park can do so much better — with tourism, for sure — linking up with the Museum and Archives. We could have a trail coming up from the Peterborough Lift Lock. It could be Peterborough’s jewel.”

Saturday’s cleanup filled six bags of garbage, four bags of recyclables, while gathering large items such as sign posts, doors, tire and mirrors. An additional 1.65 pounds of cigarette butts were also gathered for the Butt 1 Community non-profit organization.

“It’s fantastic to see pedestrians up here rather than cars racing around,” said Cockburn. “People up here walking and talking — it’s how we want to see the park in the future.”

For more information on the stewardship group, or to provide input on Armour Hill, contact the group via email at: asburnhamstewartship@gmail.com